Overview

The Department of Anthropology offers the M.A. and Ph.D. in anthropology in a program of study that provides students with a thorough grounding in the theories and research methods of the discipline. We provide training in anthropology across all four subfields (archaeology, cultural anthropology, linguistics, and biological/physical anthropology), stressing interconnections between subfields and interdisciplinary activity. Students will also develop an expertise within a specific subfield or a crosscutting specialty such as bioarchaeology, ethnohistory, or medical anthropology. Department faculty have geographical specialization in Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, North America, and Asia and pursue broad themes of inequality, globalization, cultural interaction, and human diasporas. The department also offers a certificate program in historical archaeology and cultural resource management. Special opportunities are also available for students interested in developing their skills and knowledge in museology and folklore. A more complete description of the graduate program, including the specialty areas of each faculty member, is provided at www.cas.sc.edu/anth.

The Department of Anthropology offers the Certificate in Historical Archaeology and Cultural Resource Management for students wishing to supplement their degree work in other historically oriented programs. The certificate is oriented toward professional practice and provides archaeologically based cultural resource management skills for preservation-related employment.

The certificate requires 18 semester hours (two required core seminars and four approved elective courses). Twelve semester hours must come from courses in the Department of Anthropology. The program of study should include a mix of courses in method and theory of historical archaeology and cultural resource management and their practical application.

Master of Arts in Anthropology

Admission

Applicants for a graduate degree must have a B.A. or M.A. degree from an approved college or university. Applicants must meet all requirements of The Graduate School for admission and be accepted by the Department of Anthropology. In addition to The Graduate School's admission requirements, the department requires a personal statement of the students interest and intent, a writing sample, at least two letters of recommendation, and the GRE as part of the application. A strong applicant should have GRE scores near 600 in verbal as well as in quantitative categories and a 4.0-4.5 in analytical and a 3.50 GPA. Over the past 3 years, the typical M.A. student enrolling in our program has had GRE scores of around 555 verbal, 575 quantitative, and 610 analytical (old scoring system) and a GPA of 3.30. Practically speaking, an applicant intending to seek the Ph.D. should be supported by at least two faculty members willing to serve as mentors in order to be admitted into the program. The application and financial aid deadlines are February 1.

Degree Requirements for the Master of Arts in Anthropology

Residence and other basic requirements for the degree in anthropology are set by The Graduate School. Students are required to complete a minimum of 27 hours of course work and a master's thesis (6 hours) for a total of 33 hours. Of these, at least 17 hours must be at the 700 level, excluding the thesis hours. They must participate in supervised fieldwork and successfully pass a written comprehensive exam. Specific requirements for the M.A. in Anthropology are listed below:

3. The remaining course work may be taken in anthropology or a related discipline. In this course work the student develops a specialty within anthropology. Each student is required to take at least three hours (usually one course), not including required courses, taught by anthropology faculty outside of their subfield concentration.

4. Students are required to undertake supervised fieldwork, usually during the summer between their first and second year. This requirement can be met through an approved field school or other supervised fieldwork either as a research assistant on field projects or in the course of collecting their own data. Archaeology students with no previous experience are encouraged to take the field school offered by this program or, when the student's interests warrant it, at another institution with the approval of the student's advisor.

5. Students must take and pass a comprehensive examination administered by the department.

6. Students must complete a master's thesis (and six hours of thesis preparation, ANTH 799).

Degree Requirements for the Ph.D. in Anthropology

Residence and other basic requirements for the degree in anthropology are set by The Graduate School. Doctoral students are required to complete a minimum of 30 hours of graduate work beyond the M.A., including 12 hours of dissertation credit. Additional hours may be specified by their advisor and approved by the graduate faculty. Students who enter the anthropology department at USC intending to take the M.A. and Ph.D. degrees will apply for admission to the Ph.D. program upon completion of all requirements for the M.A. (including course work, comprehensive exam, and thesis). Students entering the Ph.D. program with an M.A. in Anthropology from another university must complete the M.A. requirements or demonstrate they have completed similar course work. The required distribution of the 30 hours beyond the M.A. include:

1. an intradisciplinary seminar integrating approaches from two specific subfields to adddress a specific topic of interest.

2. two additional subfield courses not in the student's specialization.

3. a minimum of 1 (3-credit-hour) course taken in a department/discipline other than anthropology.

Students enrolled in the Ph.D. program will be admitted to candidacy after completing the following requirements: 1) a written and oral exam; 2) demonstration of two research skills (e.g. competency in a foreign language, statistical application, or visual anthropology methods and techniques); and 3) writing, presenting, and defending a dissertation prospectus. This will normally take place at the end of the first or second year after entering the Ph.D. program (third or fourth year of study after entering the department with a bachelor's degree).

Course Descriptions (ANTH)

512 -- Gender and Language Use. {=LING 512} (3) The course will explore an approach to gender and language use that emphasizes the grounding in social practice of both.

513 -- Anthropological Ethnobotany. (3) Survey of how each anthropological subfield studies the interrelationships between plants and peoples. Application of methods, including interviewing and data analysis.

515 -- Tradition and Transformations in Islamic Cultures. {=RELG 515} (3) Islam as a dynamic cultural tradition: emphasis on the tension between Islamization and the larger Islamic tradition.

542 -- Topics in Archaeological Field Problems. (1-3) (Prereq: ANTH 320 and permission of instructor) Topics in archaeological field methods and techniques. Individual topics to be announced in master schedule by suffix and title.

552 -- Medical Anthropology. {=HPRE 552} (3) Socio-cultural factors in health, illness, healing, and in medical systems. Cross-cultural and ethnographic evidence for public health research and program applications.

555 -- Language and Gender. {=LING 541, WOST 555} (3) Approaches to gender and language emphasizing the social grounding of both; how language reflects sociocultural values and is a tool for constructing different types of social organization.

569 -- Environment and Development. {=GEOG 569} (3) (Prereq: consent of instructor) Examination of development theory and environmental implications of social and economic change. Study of general theoretical perspectives will be balanced with case study materials.

570 -- Ethnographic Film. (3) Problems in conveying and interpreting ethnographic information on film or tape. Includes syntax, suitability of subject matter to the medium, irrelevant or distracting information, and observer bias.

572 -- Temporal Processes in Culture. (3) Clocks, cycles, and contingencies as they affect human societies now and have done so in the past. Theories and models from biology and the other natural sciences will be used to interpret the history of culture.

577 -- Advanced Topics in the Anthropological Study of Social Organization. (3) Selected recent theoretical and methodological developments in the study of social organization.

579 -- Cultural Ecology. (3) An interdisciplinary approach to prehistoric, historic, and contemporary relationships between the development of socio-cultural configurations and ecosystems.

581 -- Globalization and Cultural Questions. {=GEOG 581} (3) This course examines cultural understandings of and responses to globalization, examining topics such as its history and theories, migration, economic integration and inequality, identity, social movements, and the environment.

591 -- Selected Topics. (1-3) Topics of special interest. May be taken more than once as topics change.

699 -- Reading and Research. (3-6)

701 -- Physical Anthropology and Archaeology for Teachers. (3) Human origins, human evolution, human prehistory, and cultural existence from its less complex forms to early civilizations. An introduction to the concepts, methods, and data of physical, biological, and archaeological anthropology primarily for teachers. May be taken with, or independently of, ANTH 702.

702 -- Social and Linguistic Anthropology for Teachers. (3) Selected contemporary cultures, including their languages. An introduction to the concepts, methods, and data of sociocultural anthropology and anthropological linguistics, primarily for teachers. May be taken with, or independently of, ANTH 701.

703 -- Anthropological Inquiry. (3) A discussion of the general topics of anthropological inquiry, theories, and methods.

711 -- Ethics and Anthropology. (1) An examination of ethical decision making encountered in the practice of anthropology.

718 -- Seminar in European Archaeology. (3) Consideration and critique of current research in European archaeology.

719 -- Field Problems in Ethnology. (3) (Prereq: permission of instructor) Advanced graduate seminar on methods of ethnology, including research design, field methods, and interpretation of data, and the development of theory from data. Includes class and field sessions.

721 -- Community Anthropology for Professionals. (3) Those skills of social/cultural anthropology and anthropological linguistics which can aid practitioners in health, law, education, and other professional fields to function in community settings. Emphasis on cultural and sub-cultural differences in South Carolina, the Southeast, and the United States.

722 -- Summer Field School in Archaeology. (6) (Prereq: permission of graduate director) Experience in supervising archaeological research, making field decisions, and directing the collection, processing, and interpretation of archaeological data in the field.

723 -- Summer Field School in Ethnography. (3-6) (Prereq: permission of graduate director) Experience in designing and carrying out ethnographic research including project design, data collection, analysis, and description.

724 -- Visual Anthropology Research. (3) Exploring the range of anthropological research utilizing visual records (still photographs and video/film) including theoretical underpinnings and hands-on practice: how and why to use visual records in research.

730 -- Cultural Theory through Ethnography. (3) Theories of culture presented through ethnographies from different parts of the world. Issues in writing, reading, and interpreting ethnographic information.

733 -- Seminar in North American Prehistory. (3) Consideration and critique of current research in North American archaeology.

740 -- Current Issues in Archaeology. (3) Review of theoretical trends in American archaeology.

747 -- Language as Social Action. {=LING 747} (3) Examines language as a social, cultural, and political matrix. Topics include ideology, gender, race, power, agency, and resistance. Students will apply linguistic theories in their own analyses of everyday speech.

791 -- Special Topics in Anthropology. (1-3) Seminar for advanced students. Topics vary according to student and instructor interest. May be repeated for different topics.

798 -- Research Practicum in Anthropology. (3-6) (Prereq: permission of graduate director) Participation under faculty supervision of anthropological research. Development of the research project, collecting, recording, analyzing, and reporting on the data.